Tuesday, March 11, 2003

Growing Number in U.S. Back War, Survey Finds
But a majority of respondents, 52 percent, say inspectors should be given more time to search for evidence of nuclear, biological or chemical weapons on the ground in Iraq. Still, that number has dropped over the past month, and there has been an increase in the number of Americans who say the United States has done enough to find a diplomatic solution in Iraq.

Taken together, the Times/CBS News findings suggest that President Bush has made progress, at least at home, in portraying Saddam Hussein as a threat to peace while rallying support for a war over rising objections in the international community. They also signal that the nation may be moving toward the traditional wartime rallying around the president that the White House — and Mr. Bush's Democratic opponents — have anticipated.

At the same time, there was evidence that many Americans remain perplexed about what Mr. Bush is doing and why he is doing it. While Mr. Bush says his main goal is disarming Iraq, Americans are more likely to say he is motivated by a desire to oust Mr. Hussein from power. A majority of Americans say the White House has failed to tell them what they need to know about the justification for a pre-emptive attack.

Respondents were nearly evenly divided when asked if Mr. Bush was being guided by the memory of his father's dealings with Mr. Hussein in prosecuting what would be the nation's second war against Iraq in 12 years. Nearly half said Mr. Bush was driven by the personal desire to accomplish what his father did not when he cut off his invasion of Iraq in 1991 without ousting Mr. Hussein. Younger men in the poll were more apt to see a familial motivation for the president.

There is clear concern among Americans that the United States is paying a price internationally for Mr. Bush's aggressive posture. The number of Americans who believe that their president enjoys the respect of world leaders has dropped to 45 percent from 67 percent in the space of a year.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/11/politics/11POLL.html

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